Method for quantitatively extruding food material

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for quantitatively extruding food material is provided. The apparatus comprises a hopper, a frame supporting the hopper and having a chamber therein with first and second ports, to which a nozzle and a piston and cylinder assembly are connected, and a cylindrical food forming device. The food material which flows from the hopper into the chamber is confined by the cylindrical food forming device and forms a cylindrical body, which is then extruded by the piston from the nozzle, whereby even food material including large solids can be quantitatively extruded.

This is a division of application Ser. No. 834,579 filed Feb. 28, 1986,now U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,967.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method forquantitatively extruding food material and the like by a piston, andmore particularly to an apparatus and method for quantitativelyextruding fluid food material such as cream or jam, solid food materialsuch as vegetables, fruit, or pieces of cooked fish meat, and a cookedfood comprising the solid food material and paste or the like from anozzle to inject into bread or confectionery.

2. Description of Prior Art

There has been provided an apparatus for injecting food material and thelike into an article, in which a hopper, a nozzle, and a cylindercontaining a piston are disposed around a valve mechanism. When thevalve is arranged to communicate the hopper and the cylinder, the foodmaterial in the hopper can be sucked into the cylinder by retracting thepiston, and the sucked material can then be extruded from the cylindernozzle by arranging the valve to communicate the cylinder and the nozzleand advancing the piston. In this apparatus, however, the materialcannot be sucked into the cylinder except for certain kinds of materialswhich are relatively fluid. That is, less-fluid materials or materialsin which a large amount of solid is mixed or which consist only of solidcan not be sucked, because if the passage from the hopper to thecylinder is made wider, suction becomes weak, while if it is madesufficiently narrow for suction purposes, clogging occurs.

A screw feeder for extruding food material has also been provided, inwhich plastic food material, namely, less fluid food material, iseffectively extruded, but the material could not be extruded in asufficiently quantitative manner. The screw feeder, of course, is notapplicable to materials consisting only of solid.

These apparatuses can handle solid materials only if they are very softor if they are very small and mixed with other fluid materials.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus andmethod for quantitatively extruding food material.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatusand method for quantitatively extruding various kinds of fluid foodmaterials, food materials containing solids including hard solid foodsuch as diced fresh fruit.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatusand method for quantitatively extruding food material containing largesolids.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide anapparatus and method for quantitatively extruding and injecting foodmaterial into bread or confectionery without using the valve mechanism.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide anapparatus and method for quantitatively extruding food material, whichis further processed at subsequent food production stages therebyattaining sanitary and high quality food products.

In one aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for quantitativelyextruding food material is provided, which comprises a hopper, a framesupporting the hopper and having therein a chamber communicating withthe hopper and a first port and a second port for the chamber, the firstand second ports being disposed oppositely on said frame, a pistonmounted to said first port, and a nozzle mounted on said second port,characterized by a cylindrical food forming device provided adjacentsaid chamber, comprising two or more wall portions, at least one ofwhich is adapted to move toward the other wall portions to form acylindrical space with front and rear end openings, containing foodmaterial, or move away from the other wall portions to introduce foodmaterial in the chamber, the rear and front end openings of saidcylindrical space communicating with said first and second ports,respectively, and the piston capable of advancing from the first portinto the cylindrical space to extrude the food material containedtherein and retracting to allow the food material to enter the chamber.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method of quantitativelyextruding food material is provided, which comprises feeding foodmaterial from a hopper to a chamber below it, temporarily enclosing thefood material in the chamber to form a cylindrical body, and extrudingsaid cylindrical body with a piston.

In this invention, a cylindrical food forming device, which comprises aplurality of wall portions, is provided. The device is disposed below ahopper and in a frame which supports the hopper. The wall portions areadapted by gears to move toward each other to form a cylindrical space,the rear and front end openings of which communicate with the first andsecond ports on opposite walls of the frame respectively.

A nozzle is mounted to the second port and a piston is mounted to thefirst port.

Since the chamber in the frame is very wide as compared with theconventional food suction system, even food material containinglarge-sized solids can be enclosed in the cylindrical space formed whenthe wall portions close.

The thus formed cylindrical body of the food material can be extruded bythe piston and injected through the nozzle into an article.

Since the apparatus according to the present invention can confine thefood material in the chamber by the cylindrical food forming device,food material confined within the space, even when it containslarge-sized solids, is then extruded by the piston without any troubleand injected through the nozzle into bread or confectionery.

As aforementioned, the apparatus according to the present invention doesnot need a valve mechanism or a piston and cylinder assembly for vacuumsuction, food material containing even large-sized solids can beeffectively extruded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the wall portions of a cylindricalspace forming device of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic and perspective view of the cylindrical spaceforming device of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates the operation of the wall portions of the cylindricalspace forming device, where the tips 4' and 5' of wall portions 4 and 5collide with each other to form a cylindrical space 3, of the firstembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a partly cross-sectional, front elevation view of the firstembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows a partly cross-sectional, side elevation view of the firstembodiment of the present embodiment, in which the cylindrical foodforming device is viewed along a line A--A in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional, front elevation view of the wallportions of the cylindrical food forming device of a second embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows cross-sectional, front elevation view of the wall portionsof the cylindrical food forming device of a third embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 8 shows a cross-sectional front elevation view of the wall portionsof the cylindrical food forming device of a fourth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 9 shows a cross-sectional, side elevation view of the wall portionsof the cylindrical food forming device of a fifth embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 10 shows a cross-sectional, front elevational view taken on a lineB--B in FIG. 9, when the wall portion 37 is in place to form acylindrical space.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described withreference to FIGS. 1-5.

Three wall portions 4, 5, and 6 are separately illustrated asperspective views in FIG. 1.

The wall portions 4 and 5 are pivotally mounted on a pivot shaft 11 toform a hinge. Tips 4' and 5' of the wall portions 4 and 5 function toclosely enclose food material and to apply the increased load to areversible motor 20. A wall portion 6 is adapted to be assembled withthe wall portions 4 and 5 and fixedly mounted on a frame 7. Innersurfaces 22 and 23 of the wall portions 4 and 5 and an upper surface 24of the wall portion 6 are configured such that they form a cylindricalspace when the tips 4' and 5' collide, as shown in FIG. 2. The front andrear ends of the cylinder thus formed are open. In FIG. 2, the wallportion 4 has an outer surface which forms an arc in cross-section, anda gear 12 is provided on said surface, and meshes with a gear 14 mountedon an end of a shaft 15, the other end of which is connected to areversible motor 20. The gear 14 is rotatable by the power transmittedfrom the reversible motor 20 and, causes the gear 12 to rotate therebymoving tip 4' of the wall portion 4 about the shaft 11 toward or awayfrom the tip 5' of the wall portion 5. Similarly, a gear 13 (FIG. 4)provided on the curved outer surface of the wall portion 5 meshes withthe gear 16 and moves the tip 5' of the wall portion 5 about the shaft11 toward and away from the tip 4' of the wall portion 4 receiving thepower from the reversible motor 20 through the gear 16, the shaft 17connected to the gear 16, the gear 39 connected to the shaft 17, thegear 19 meshing with the gear 39, the gear 18 meshing with the gear 19,and the gear 38 meshing with the gear 18 and mounted on the shaft 15. Asthe directions of rotation of the shafts 15 and 17 are opposite, therotation of the shafts 15 and 17 causes the tips 4' and 5' of the wallportions 4 and 5 to move toward or away from each other.

In FIG. 3, the wall portions 4 and 5 move in the directions indicated byarrows "a" and "b", until the tips 4' and 5' come into contact to form acylindrical space 3. When the tips 4' and 5' move away from each other,the movement will stop when the surfaces 22 and 23 come to the positionshown by the phantom lines. In FIG. 4, the bottom surfaces of the wallportions as seen in FIG. 2 are about to engage each other and a furthermovement of the tips 4' and 5' away from each other is prevented.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, the cylindrical food forming device with the set ofgears is mounted on the frame 7 below a chamber 21.

In FIG. 4, food material 1 contains solids, and is placed in a hopper 2supported on the frame 7. The chamber 21 is formed in the frame 7between the hopper 2 above it and the cylindrical food forming devicebelow it. The chamber 21 directly communicates with the hopper 2 withoutany obstruction between them. The outer surfaces of the wall portions 4and 5 form a circle in cross-section and the shaft 11 is positioned atthe center of the circle. The configuration of the walls 6 of the frame7 is such that they tangentially abut the circle. A knob 32 is providedon the outer surface of the frame 7 and is used to adjust the volume ofthe food material to be injected into an article 36 (FIG. 5). The volumecan be adjusted by the adjustment of the portion of the piston 24 asexplained below. The volume of the desired amount is indicated on adisplay panel 33.

The directions of movement of the tips 4' and 5' of the wall portions 4and 5 toward each other are indicated by arrows "a" and "b".

In FIG. 5, the pivot shaft 11 is mounted to the frame 7. The chamber 21is provided with a first port 9 and a second port 8, which are alignedwith and of the same size and configuration as the rear and front endopenings of the cylindrical space formed by the cylindrical food formingdevice. A piston 25 is provided outside the first port 9 and is insliding engagement with it so as to pass through the port 9 in thedirection of the second port 8.

The piston 25 is a cylinder with one end closed and its inside surfaceis threaded. It has a ring form flange 25' at the open end. Acylindrical shaft 27 has an enlarged portion 26 at an end, which portionis externally screw threaded. The portion 26 engages the screw threadedportion of a piston 25.

The other end of the shaft 27 is rotatably supported on the frame 7through a bearing assembly. A pully 28 is provided near the other end ofthe shaft 27 and is connected by a belt 40 to a pully 29 mounted on areversible motor 30. A stopper 31 is mounted on the frame 7 and ismovable in the direction shown by the arrow. It selects a position atwhich the ring 25' of the piston 25 is stopped and generates a signal todirect a reverse rotation of the motor 30. The stopper 31 also generatesa signal to the motor 20 to reverse its rotation. The position of thestopper 31 is determined by the operation of the knob 32.

On the outer surface of the piston 25 a key groove 41 is provided in thelongitudinal direction and it engages a key 9' projecting from the innersurface of the first port 9. This arrangement causes the rotation of thepiston 25 together with the rotation of the shaft 27 to be obstructed.Thus the piston 25 can advance or retract along the key 9' when theshaft 27 rotates in one direction or the other receiving the power fromthe reversible motor 30. The stroke of the piston 25 is determined bythe position of the stopper 31. As aforementioned, when the ring 25'comes into contact with the stopper 31, the forward movement of thepiston 25 is stopped and the movement is reversed. On the other hand,when the rear end of the piston 25 collides with a rear end switch 35positioned at a suitable place, the switch 35 generates a stop signalfor the reversible motor 30.

A nozzle 10 is mounted to the second port 8. The inner diameter of thenozzle 10 may preferably be equal to the inner diameter of the secondport 8 and the cylindrical space 3 or smaller. A contact switch 34 isdisposed adjacent the nozzle 10, which functions to generate a signal torotate the reversible motor 20, when the contact 34 engages an article36 or an operator's hand.

The operation of the first embodiment of the present invention will nowbe described.

The food material 1 containing solids is charged in the hopper 2 andaccumulates in the chamber 21. When the article 36 is placed on a table42 as shown by a broken line and the nozzle 10 is inserted into thearticle 36, the contact switch 34 transmits a signal to the reversiblemotor 20 to cause it to rotate in a normal direction. The power of themotor 20 is transmitted through the shaft 15 and a series of gearsthereby moving the wall portions 4 and 5 to cause the tips 4' and 5' tocollide with each other. Thus, the food material is surrounded by thesurfaces 22, 23, and 24, the rear end of the food material remaining inthe nozzle 10 from the preceding operation, and the front end of thepiston 25. Therefore, a cylindrical body of the food material is formed.The operator turns the knob 32 to select the position of the stopper 31thereby determining the desired stroke of the piston 25. The strokedefines the volume of the food material 1 to be injected into thearticle 36, which is displayed on the display panel 33.

Even when the solids mixed in the food material 1 is larger than theinner diameter of the cylindrical space 3, the tips 4' and 5' can cut itto enclose it within the cylindrical space. The reversible motor 20 isadapted to sense the increased load caused by the collision of the tips4' and 5' and automatically stop its operation. It is preferable toprovide a relay to the reversible motor 20, which actuates thereversible motor 30 the reversible motor 20 is stopped.

Therefore, the reversible motor 30 can be operated by the signal fromthe relay or by the operator through an input switch. The operation ofthe reversible motor 30 causes the advance of the piston 25 therebyextruding the food material 1 within the cylindrical space, into thenozzle 10.

When the piston 25 comes into contact with the stopper 31, the stopper31 sends a signal to the reversible motor 30 and the reversible motor 20to rotate in the reverse direction, the piston 25 begins to retract andthe tips 4' and 5' of the wall portions 4 and 5 begin to move away fromeach other. The reverse rotation of the motor 30 stops when the rear endof the ring 25' comes into contact with the rear end switch 35, and thereverse rotation of the motor 20 stops when it senses an increased loadcaused by the collision of the bottom surfaces of the wall portions 4and 5. Thus, the food material can enter the chamber 21 and accumulatesthere.

The second embodiment of the present invention will now be describedwith reference to FIG. 6. The cylindrical food forming device iscomposed of two wall portions 4 and 5, each having a longitudinal recesssemi-circular in cross-section which can horizontally approach eachother to form a cylindrical space 3.

The third embodiment of the present invention is described withreference to FIG. 7, in which only one wall portion 5 is adapted tohorizontally move to another wall portion formed on the wall of theframe below the hopper 2.

The fourth embodiment of the present invention is described withreference to FIG. 8 in which only one wall portion 5 is adapted toswingably move to approach another wall portion formed like the thirdembodiment.

The fifth embodiment of the present invention is described withreference to FIGS. 9 and 10. A slidable wall portion 37 has threelongitudinal recesses, each semi-circular in cross-section. The slidablewall portion 37 moves toward the chamber 21 to form three cylindricalspaces 3 together with three longitudinal recesses provided on thebottom of the frame 7, thereby enclosing the food material within thethus formed three cylindrical spaces.

As aforementioned, the device and method according to the presentinvention comprises temporarily forming the cylindrical body of the foodmaterial within a cylindrical space and extruding the thus formed body.Therefore, the chamber below the hopper can have large dimensions,permitting the chamber to receive large solids.

The device according to the present invention can provide thequantitative and effective extrusion of less fluid material or materialcontaining solids. Even if the size of solids is larger than thediameter of the cylindrical body, they can be cut to size by thecoaction of the wall portions. Furthermore, the food material consistingonly of solids cna be enclosed within the temporarily formed cylindricalspace and extruded.

When the inner diameter of the nozzle is smaller than that of thecylindrical space, an eddy stream of the material would occur, or ablock would be formed by the solids near the formed end of thecylindrical space. These phenomena can be avoided by designing the innerdiameter of the nozzle so as to be equal to that of the cylindricalspace.

We claim:
 1. A method of quantitatively extruding a fluid food materialcontaining solid food material comprising the steps of:feeding the fluidfood material from a hopper to a cylindrical chamber provided on thebottom of said hopper, temporarily enclosing the food material in thechamber to form a cylindrical body, and extruding said cylindrical bodyfrom the chamber with a piston into an edible article via a nozzleinserted in the edible article, said nozzle having approximately thesame inner diameter as that of said cylindrical chamber.
 2. A method ofquantitatively extruding food filling containing solid food into anedible article through a nozzle having an inner diameter from acylindrical food forming device having a plurality of arcuate wallswherein at least one of the walls is moveable comprising the stepsof:moving one wall away from another wall; introducing fillingcontaining solid food from a hopper into a chamber formed by theplurality of arcuate walls; moving one wall toward the other wall toform a cylindrical chamber having an inner diameter equal to an innerdiameter of the nozzle; selecting a quantity of food filling containingsolid food to extrude; inserting the nozzle into an edible article; andextruding the selected quantity of food filling containing solid foodfrom the cylindrical chamber through the nozzle into the edible article.